My Hero
by The Cell
Summary: Sometimes, Eleanor thinks, you witness something big, and you don't even know it.


Disclaimer: Yeah, I still don't own any of these characters, or the places.

Eleanor Branstone had not noticed the sun setting outside the stained glass windows of the library. She had not noticed everyone slowly packing up and departing. Eleanor had been so engrossed in her book on magical beings that she had completely forgotten the time. When she finally looked up to find everyone gone she panicked. Eleanor was not a Gryffindor for good reason. Dark castles at night did not sound like good fun to her. Walking alone all the way back to the Hufflepuff commons terrified her. She slowly crept toward the doors of the library, clutching her book like a lifeline. She jumped as she heard the sound of light footsteps coming up behind her from the direction of the restricted section. She spun around and was faced with Hermione Granger.

"Sorry, did I frighten you? Where did everyone go? It was rather busy earlier." Hermione talked really fast, was the only coherent thought Eleanor managed to form.

"Um…It's quarter after eleven." She mumbled, slightly embarrassed now about her jumpiness. There were few things less scary than Hermione Granger in a good mood. Suddenly a loud thunderclap was heard as lightning illuminated Hermione's face casting sinister shadows across her smile and Eleanor jumped again.

"I'll escort you down to your commons." Hermione said.

"You d-don't have to do that." Eleanor stuttered slightly, blushing profusely now. She was absolutely mortified at the older, and by all accounts very brave, girl having noticed her fear.

"Nonsense, there's no sense at all in letting a first year navigate the halls alone in the dark. Filch is being absolutely horrid lately and Peeves is his usual chaotic self. I wouldn't be able to sleep for fear you'd gotten stuck in a trick step somewhere." Hermione would clearly hear no more of it and Eleanor was secretly glad. They both started moving toward the doors again. When they turned a corner and faced the great wooden doors of the library they found a boy, seemingly dozing with his back to the door. He stirred as they approached. "Hello Diggory, I didn't think the library was included in patrols." Eleanor was a bit confused by the nonchalant half question. She'd heard Hermione Granger was a stickler for rules, and Cedric Diggory was a prefect after all.

"You wound me Hermione, last name basis?" But then maybe she knew Cedric wouldn't do anything, Eleanor thought as he clutched his chest in mock agony. "Hello Eleanor." Cedric Diggory, in Eleanor's experience, was pathologically polite. He had to greet her or it would weigh on his conscience for days. He'd accidentally missed Kevin saying hello a few weeks into term and when one of his friends pointed it out he promptly turned around and jogged back to where Kevin was standing. It was really rather amusing.

"Don't be so melodramatic Cedric. Why are you sitting by the door?" Hermione rolled her eyes at him.

"It's locked, I got here about half an hour ago, all ready to go on my rounds, but I can't get out. Pince must have left." Somehow this did not seem to bother Cedric as much as it did Eleanor.

"Oh Merlin, and you know how paranoid she is about her books, we'll never get that door open." Hermione groaned slightly. "And tomorrow is a Hogsmeade weekend. Madam Pince doesn't open the library until nine." An even louder clap of thunder sounded, sending Eleanor several inches into the air. She hoped her two older companions didn't notice.

"What's wrong Eleanor?" No such luck. Cedric sounded genuinely concerned.

"I hate storms." She mumbled, willing her blush to fade. Cedric seemed relieved somehow.

"Well if the storm wants to get to you it'll have to go through me." He puffed out his chest and Eleanor snorted. Hermione rolled her eyes again.

"Ignore him, he's just being male." She slung a reassuring arm across Eleanor's shoulders.

"No but really." Cedric said. "We're right here with you, nothing's going to happen."

"Come on, if we're going to be stuck in here all night we might as well be comfortable. There's a great couch in the history section." Hermione lead Eleanor down the isles and Cedric followed.

"What are you going to do about your rounds?" Hermione asked suddenly.

"Oh it'll be fine, we're reporting to Snape and he's not interested. Hufflepuffs fly under the radar with him." He grinned at her slightly offended look. "Hermione, why do you rattle when you walk?" Cedric questioned after a minute of walking in silence. Hermione didn't answer but pulled out a box from her book bag. Cedric took out a small badge. "S.P.E.W" He read slowly. "Hey I've heard of this. Do you really think all the house-elves should be freed?" He asked, and Eleanor could sense him preparing arguments in his mind.

"Honestly? No." Clearly this was not the response Cedric had expected, and Eleanor was utterly confused.

"But then why?" He said, gesturing toward the badges.

"It's not about freeing them. I know most of them don't want to be free. I just want them to be treated decently. I can't stand how people look down on them." The subject was clearly close to her heart. Her hair seemed to crackle when she talked about things she cared about.

"But then why not rally for laws on better treatment of elves? Why are you petitioning for them all to be freed?" Cedric was clearly just as confused as Eleanor. She had barely even noticed as they reached the couch and her two older companions took each side and let her lie down with her head in Hermione's lap and her legs across Cedric's. Despite the fact that she'd barely said a word, she somehow didn't feel left out of the conversation. Her two teenage comrades directed their speech as much toward her as each other and left space for her to interject.

"Because it's not about S.P.E.W either. I know it's going to take time, and I'll be fighting an uphill battle, but think about it. My demands are outrageous, but I'm not intending anyone to meet them. All I'm doing is creating a stir, making people talk about it. Eventually when someone comes along with the suggestion of setting ground rules on hose-elf treatment, their proposal will seem perfectly reasonable next to mine." Clearly she had put a lot of thought into this. Eleanor wondered if it would work, she hoped so. Hermione's hand was slowly brushing through Eleanor's hair as she spoke, lulling the younger girl closer to sleep.

"Wow, you know I was all ready here to get on you for going off half cocked. Obviously I wasn't needed. I have to say I wholeheartedly agree with your plans, now that I understand them. I'm not joining S.P.E.W, but in a few years, when we're out of school and you've gotten everyone properly riled up, I'll be making some of those reasonable demands." Hermione grinned at him. She picked up one of the badges and pointed her wand at it. She muttered a few choice words and it rearranged itself to read 'My Hero'. She tossed it at him. "Aaw, I'll wear it close to my heart, always." He attached it to a chain around his neck and tucked it safely inside his shirt. Eleanor slowly dozed off to the sound of them discussing charms.

She woke up with a bright light shining in her eyes and noticed she was wearing Cedric's robe as a blanket. The two older students smiled as she sat up and handed back the robe. She couldn't tell if they'd slept because their conversation seemed to still be going but they could have just picked it up recently. Hermione glanced up at an old clock and noticed it was almost nine. "Let's go, we can sneak out while Madam Pince checks the records." They parted ways outside the library as Cedric headed for breakfast and Hermione and Eleanor rushed to their respective dorms to change. Both girls managed to send envious looks back at the Hufflepuff boy who for all the world looked as though he'd spent the last hour in the bathroom getting ready. It wasn't until she reached her dorm that Eleanor noticed the badge attached to the front of her robe. She glanced at it. 'Our Brave Badger'.

Eleanor Branstone fingered the badge hanging from her necklace as she looked up at the Wizengamot. As she made her way to the middle of the room she chanced a glance at the audience and noticed a young woman with brown hair fiddling with a pendant that looked remarkably like Eleanor's own. She couldn't read it from where she was now sitting, but she knew what it said. 'My Girl'. That was what Cedric had inscribed on Hermione's badge, fifteen years ago. Four months before he died. Eleanor spares her a quick grin before addressing the court.

"Honorable witches and wizards of the Wizengamot, in light of outrageous demands made by house-elf liberation activists, I propose a review of the current laws regarding the treatment of house-elves and other creatures." After all, true heroes never die.

The End


End file.
